<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Crystalline Eyes by yourlocal_weirdo</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25814179">Crystalline Eyes</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/yourlocal_weirdo/pseuds/yourlocal_weirdo'>yourlocal_weirdo</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Terraria</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Action &amp; Romance, Adventure, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Attempt at Humor, Awkward Crush, Blood and Violence, Fights, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Light Angst, Multi, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, hi welcome to chilis, i added sum other things just cuz, i mean my first chapter fic</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 12:07:31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,864</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25814179</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/yourlocal_weirdo/pseuds/yourlocal_weirdo</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The darkness the newfound being had just gotten used to started to lighten as it was whisked into a whirlpool, one leading straight to the overworld.</p>
<p>"Oh, I almost forgot," Mother called into the vortex of which the being was now engulfed in, "your name! Your name is---"</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Arms Dealer/Nurse (Terraria), Goblin Tinkerer/Mechanic (Terraria), Guide (Terraria)/Original Character(s), Steampunker/Pirate (Terraria)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>15</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. How About, 'Try Not to Die'</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Kola, readers! This is my first chapter fic, as well as my first Terraria fic. It takes place before 1.4, so no bestiary, or kites or whatever. (There is Moon Lord, however. Don't really know what update he is, but whatever.) Sorry, I just haven't gotten around to playing it as of late. Also keep in mind I might have a wonky update schedule, soo uhhh sorry? Shout-out to A_reallygayhumanbean, she helped develop some story (and a character actually, muffs, u know who i mean ôωô) Check her out, she does good writing stuff.<br/>And so, without further ado, lets jump into this!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"My child."</p>
<p>In this floating abyss of silence, it was surprising to hear a voice, much less one of kindness. Out of the nothing there, it would seem this slightly feminine voice was speaking to no one. Yet, it was addressing a small, white ball of what seemed to be condensed fog. The ball, which was, at the time, a soul without a physical form, acknowledged this with a jolt, swishing around in fear and confusion.</p>
<p>"There  is no need to fear, young kit. I am your <i>mother</i>, I would never hurt you."</p>
<p>The soul, perhaps sensing the truth in her tone, settled down so their 'mother' could continue. Her voice had a warm and comforting feeling, like the embrace of a loved one.</p>
<p>" I have a job for you, small one. This world, Terraria, is being haunted by monsters of legend. Our god, Moon Lord, has been corrupted. He seeks to end all sentient life and replace it with his own creations. Terrarians, monsters and half-beast alike will all face imminent death through Moon Lord's rash decisions. This cannot be allowed."</p>
<p>The soul did not like this talk of death and destruction. It fizzled angrily, showing it's intentions quite clearly through action alone. It wanted to help.</p>
<p>A chuckle rose from the voice, Mother. " Calm down, brave one, you will have a part in this. You are <b>one of the four</b> to save this world from <i>ultimate chaos</i>. A human, a deity, a half-beast and a monster shall come together to save our world. But you aren't anything yet, are you?. You'll need a body. Now..."</p>
<p>A moment of confusion passed throught the little fog-ball before the sensations took place. The growth of arms, legs, fingers,<i>hair, beautiful white hair</i>, lovely ice blue eyes, a mouth, a small, rounded nose, it all took place in the blink of an eye, though it felt like years to the newly-formed creature. It bent it's arms, flexed it's fingers, <i> saw, saw the darkness and the glow of Mother, heard, heard past her voice and to the sounds of a wind that never blew, smelled, smelled nothing and everything all at once.</i></p>
<p>The being couldn't ever imagine going back to being a small, measly fog-ball like soul.</p>
<p>"Hmmmm, now, what color was Terrarian hair? Ah well, we can leave it white. Terrarians are pale, right? Ah, you wouldn't know.No matter, no matter." Mother took a minute to study the new creature in front of her. "Perfect. You are perfect, my kit.Now, I must send you off. It pains me greatly, but you have your journey to accomplish, friends to make, worlds to save."</p>
<p>Although having no physical attributes, the female could sense Mother's sadness like waves, and this worried her. Her mother should not have to be sad! The female tried to approach the glowing light, her 'mother', but something held her back.</p>
<p>"No, child. I love you, but you must do this. For Terraria's sake , and for mine." The smile returned to Mother's voice, thought it still carried that tone of sadness."Make me proud, my brave child. Make me proud."</p>
<p>The darkness the newfound being had just gotten used to started to lighten as it was whisked into a whirlpool, one leading straight to the overworld. </p>
<p>"Oh, I almost forgot," Mother called into the vortex of which the being was now engulfed in, "your name! Your name is---"</p>
<p>————————————————————————</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Sunlight filtered through trees, wind played through strands of grass, squirrels and rabbits alike were getting up and ready to tackle the day. Meanwhile, Callie was face-down in the ground, practically eating dirt.</p>
<p>It took a bit for the small female to wake up, but once she did, she shot up onto her knees, spitting out dirt. She sat down and started brushing the dirt off her copper-tone pants,her sunset-orange scarf, her pale yellow button-up, out of her face and out of her white hair. Standing up, Callie finally took in her environment. She was on a gentle-sloping hill, surrounded by a minimal amount of trees. The sun was <i>just</i> peeking over the horizon, painting the sky in a faint golden hue. Clouds of all shapes, sizes and textures drifted lazily across the vast morning skies. Callie had never seen a sunrise this gorgeous. Then again, she's never seen a sunrise before. She knew what they were, just not how beautiful or entrancing they could be.</p>
<p>Without realizing it, Callie had watched the sun religiously as it made it's journey across the sky. She never saw the figure creeping up on her, not till the very last moment, when he spoke.</p>
<p>"Sun's pretty, isn't it?"</p>
<p>Callie whipped around and came face to face with a slightly attractive, scruffy, tawny-haired male. He, too, jumped at Callie's abrupt movement, before smiling."Sorry, didn't mean to spook you. Haven't seen too many people out here, not since..." The man's eyes clouded over for a brief second,but he shook his head, and the sadness wafted away with the clouds. " Anyway, hello, I'm Asher," the man stated, hold out his hand. "I'll be your guide for your journey.Any questions and/or concerns about what to do or where to go next, feel free to ask me."</p>
<p>Callie took his hand in a firm handshake, phantom sadness forgotten completely."I'm Callie," she replied cheerfully," I don't know what I'm supposed to be doing!"</p>
<p>Asher gave the albino a look of amused confusion. "Well, I can't say your not motivated. Here," he handed Callie some tools which were seemingly made of copper, "you're gonna need a house. And to make a house, you need materials! First off, you'll need wood. To gather such, take this axe and chop a few trees. I'll give you further instructions when you think you've gathered enough."</p>
<p>So, the small female set off to go conquer some trees. A chop here, a chop there, and done! The wood was hers. Picking up stuff in this new world was strange, too. On Callie's first tree, when she bent down to pick up the wood, it rammed straight into her stomach! Well, not entirely. The wood seemed to phase <i>into</i> her stomach. Where it went, she doesn't know. Asher probably does, though.On her fifth tree, she experienced on of the most crucial moments in her life. When she encountered her first mob.</p>
<p>A small blue glop of gel came a-hopping toward Callie, who was invested full-time into tree chopping. She didn't see it till' it bumped up against her leg. Callie looked over at the blue goop monster and paused to admire it. It's jelly body wiggled and wobbled for every hop it took, and it seemed as if it it could be squished, if one happened to step on it.</p>
<p>She bent down to look at it more closely. It didn't seem to do much, other than jiggle and occasionally bounce a few inches one way or another. Her mistake came when she tried to pet it. Her hand, when it came in contact with the goop, phased right through it's body, stopping in the center. For a second, all the crystal-eyed female felt was a warm, slightly wet sensation from her wrist down.</p>
<p>Then it HURT. A LOT.</p>
<p>"KYAAAAAAA!!!!!" Callie shook the aggresive mob off her hand and ran to Asher, who had been peacefully harvesting mushrooms. "Hey, Callie, done alre-" Callie dived behind Asher, clutching his shoulders as the slime approached, menacingly. Her voice shook as she spoke. "Th-th-the b-blue goo th-thing over there tri-tri-tried t-to <i>eat</i> me an it <i>hurt</i> an I, a-an I, I don't know what I did!" Asher gently pried her from his shoulders and did what anyone would've done in that position.</p>
<p>He shoved her <strong>right in the slime's path.</strong></p>
<p>Callie was shaking like a leaf, barely able to contain the fear she felt as this hostile monster approached her, weaponless, with no means of protecting herself. Her heart was pounding in her ears, her eyes pricking with tears. Was this how she was gonna go? Being mauled by a goop thing not even a day into her existence? She was faintly aware of someone, a male, speaking to her. Could it possibly be Death, beckoning her to the afterlife? Was Death male? Do they even have a gender? Amidst her inner monologue, she could fainly make out words as her sight became tunnel-visioned. 'Pull...out...yersornd?' Yersornd, yersord... "your sword!" That's right, along with an axe, Asher handed her a sword, among other things. She pulled the sword from her pockets, her vision becoming laser-focused, her hearing picking up on everything, her body light as a feather.</p>
<p>Fueled off adrenaline, newfound courage and a will to live another 30 minutes, Callie attacked. She rushed the beast, hacking and slashing, dodging haphazardly, escaping some damage but <i>definitely</i> not all, until the monster was nothing more than a pile of gel and... money? Callie squatted and tried to get a better look, but the money zoomed into her stomach, only to disappear to wherever her collected items have been going.<i>Ooooh,</i> she was never gonna get used to that.</p>
<p>Callie turned to Asher the moment the pain started kicking in. Despite her best efforts at dodging, she still sustained heavy damage from that ONE slime. She doubled over, landing on her bad hand and eventually crashing to the dirt. "You must've sustained some heavy damage from that fight." Asher came rushing over, a few mushrooms in hand.</p>
<p>"Y-yeah, no thanks to you," Callie retorted as Asher propped her against a tree. "Well," he said defensively," I don't know how to fight, so I wouldn't be much help." Callie stared at him dead-on and replied with,"Yeah. Neither did I. You shoved me <i>right</i> into the slime, case' ya hadn't noticed." Asher turned his head away, an embarrassed flush creeping up on his face. "Y-you're the chosen one, the important one! Ya know, the one destined to save the world and stuff? Besides, you <i>did</i> have the sword."</p>
<p>"No. I don't know. Care to elaborate?" Callie glanced over at Asher, still trying to mask his blushing face. "Just, eat these and I'll tell you what I'm talking about. Don't worry," he added, seeing the worry on Callie's face, "they aren't poisonous." Callie took one from Asher and hesitantly popped it in her mouth. She was surprised at how fast she began to feel better. Not completely healed, but better than before. Callie looked at Asher expectantly, the 'go-on' clear on her face. Asher cleared his throat as as his face started to heat up, and began explaining.</p>
<p>"A long while ago, like, <i>wayyyy</i> back, a travelling wizard had a vision. The world would fall to disarray, soon to be consumed by Moon Lord's hatred towards Terrarians. But out of the many, four humans would stand out, courageous and brave, and put Moon Lord back into their century long slumber. Of the four, one was told to have <i>eyes of crystal.</i> I knew right away, just from looking at you, your eyes, really, that you would be the one to save the... Callie?"</p>
<p>Callie was engrossed with her hand. She kept flipping it, examining it like she was gonna have a test on it. A few seconds ago, there were 'acid' marks <i>covering</i> her hand, and now they were...gone. What were in those mushrooms? </p>
<p>"CALLIE!"Asher's voice jarred Callie from her inner turmoil."Did you even listen to me?!" Callie looked over at Asher, who had an angry look plastered across his face. Anger really didn't suit that face of his. "No, I was listening. You were talking about some old dude who did magic, and he foresaw like, <i>years</i> into the future, and apparently I'm supposed to save the world or something. Did I get that right?"</p>
<p>Asher's face softened into a look of confusion. Or bewilderment. Or both. "Well, I guess that's <i>technically</i> the truth. Anyways, do you have enough materials to make yourself a proper living space?"</p>
<p>Callie opened her mouth to speak, then closed it. In reality, <i>she didn't actually know.</i> "Ah, I... <i>don't know.</i>How uh... how do I check?" Asher looked at her with outright confusion. "You able to pull out the sword, though." Callie glanced away. "Well, I don't really know how I did it. I had more important things to focus on. Like, ya know, not dying? So uhhh could you give me the basic rundown?" Asher, master of facial conversation, gave her the ultimate <i>are you kidding me right now do I have to explain this stuff you idiot</i> look. Callie smiled sheepishly as Asher sighed. </p>
<p>"Reach into your pockets."</p>
<p>"What? Is it that simple?"</p>
<p>"Just do it. Think about pulling out the wood."</p>
<p>Callie hesitantly reached into her pockets. Nothing would be in there, of course, all items she had were absorbed into her chest but-</p>
<p>What.</p>
<p>The small albino pulled out wood, not even counting to know that there was around 30-40 pieces. Callie tried asking what in the living deities just happened, but she was left speechless. Hey, it's not every day you pull wood out of your pockets that fused with your stomach. "Hmm," The scruffy male mused, "that might be enough. This way." He guided the snow-haired female over to a clearing, one flat enough for a small house. "This area is suitable for a house, don't you think? Now, get to building!"</p>
<p>Callie stared into the clearing space for a while, before turning to Asher." Why can't you? You seem to know everything. I almost got <b>murdered</b>, for Moon Lord's sake. I gathered the wood, so why don't you build it?"</p>
<p>Asher smiled, but it looked forced. "Simple. It's not my job. I guide, you do hero stuff. Guides don't <i>build,</i> we guide."</p>
<p>Callie scowled at Asher. "Well that's a bit petty, don't you think? Ah, well, I guess I'll do it. Lazy bum." She said the last part mostly to herself, but oh well if the jerkface heard her. With instructions from Asher, the crystal-eyed albino reluctantly built a house. A few blocks high, 3-7 that's all she needed, Asher said, what does he know, and a few more chopped trees for the walls, because my stars, did the walls require a lot of dang wood. Making the workbench was certainly interesting. She ended up pulling a recipe book thung out of her pockets when she needed walls. The book automatically opened to the page with the wall recipe, and without thinking, Callie touched it. A moment later, walls appeared in her hand. She'll have to ask Asher about this, maybe when he's not being a jerk. 


Before long, she had finished. The young female stood back to admire her work.It was long, kind of, and had a low roof. Small, sure, but Callie's first work and new home It'll fill it's role good enough. She turned to Asher to see if he had anything about it, probably something offensive, but he had disappeared. Fine, she didn't need him anyway. Just, just boss her around and ditch her, huh? She didn't need him, she-</p>
<p>"Oh, you finished? It's... hey, are you <i>crying?</i> W-was it something I did?" Asher appeared at the edge of the clearing, mushrooms in hand before rushing over to Callie, sitting in front of her, worry plastered across his face. "What's wrong? Did something come to hurt you, are you okay? I, I have mushrooms, if you're hurt."</p>
<p>Seeing Asher fret over her well-being made Callie a little less mad at him. She wiped away the tears that had crept in her eyes and spilt down her face before speaking. "I-I'm fine. I just th-thought you <b>left me.</b> I w-was scared an-an-an stuff, but I'm fine now. Heh heh," the small female turned her head toward the tawny-haired male, a soft smile on her face, "I'm just a big ol' crybaby, aren't I?"</p>
<p>Asher laughed, as if she had told a really funny joke. "At least you're not a coward, like me, Once upon a time, when I was 7 springs or so old, my father, a man who believed strongly in the passing down of the guide <i>privilege</i> as he called it, caught me building a small house. He asked me what I was doing, and I told him I was making a house for the animals that lived near me. He told me, in a gruff voice, like this," Asher's voice dropped several octaves," and said, 'Now, kiddo, don cha' know, buildin be dan-ger-ous fer us guides, buildin is wot attrac's em monsters, an yeh don wanna fight em beasties, do yeh?' I was shaking hard, just from the thought of fighting them, the onslaught of monsters one house would bring. I swore to my father I would never build. I tried to break the habit once, though." Asher looked off to the side, a sad look on his face. "When my mother died, we placed the headstone she dropped on the hill, where she loved to sit and read. One rainy day, I went up there to say hello to her. I saw the puddles forming in the dirt, and just decided hey, it's just one little roof, it wont hurt anybody. I grabbed the necessary materials and got by my dad unnoticed, but I hesitated when I got to the grave. I was still afraid. I never did it. To this day, I'm still afraid, and I'm 24 springs old now. I just... can't."</p>
<p>Asher gazed out into the reddening sky, before turning to Callie, a shy smile on his face. "Heh, you probably <b>didn't</b> want to hear my sad boo-hoo backstory, did you?" Callie said nothing, just waited one moment before wrapping her arms around the tawny-haired male. Asher squeaked at the sudden action, his face burning, but hugged the small female back, appreciating the comfort. Callie was the first to break away, her usually pale face red as the sunset. "Gahh, I didn't know what got into me, you just looked like you needed a hug, I'm sorry." Asher patted Callie on the head, getting up and helping her, too. " We might as well get inside, it's sunset, we don't want to get attacked by monsters. Eugh."</p>
<p>Callie and Asher trudged inside, as their was no door, or torch for lighting, or much of anything yet. Asher squinted into the darkness. "It is dark in here. If only we had light... Callie? We need a torch." Callie picked out the ingredients and was about to craft it when she was struck by an idea. The snow-haired albino handed the wood and gel to Asher. "Why don't you make it," she asked, "Dont worry," she added, a grin spread across he face, "I won't let any pesky monsters hurt you!" Asher looked at the materials with a mix of awe and fear, wondering if he could, if he should. A single pulse of defiance rushed through him, and he decided, yes, he <b>would</b>. For the first time in 17 springs, Asher crafted, he made, he <b>built.</b> He placed the torch up on the wall, at the center. The scruffy male turned to Callie, happiness sparkling his eyes. " Can... Can I make more?" So Asher made a door, and a table and a chair, and was about to set out for more materials, but Callie held him back. "Woah, woah, take it easy tiger, we still have tomorrow. For now, lets get some rest." She selected a corner and snuggled up in it, Asher soon following, sitting next to Callie definitely not putting way too much thought into this. </p>
<p>"Night', Asher."</p>
<p>"Night', Callie."</p>
<p>"..."</p>
<p>"You realize tommorow you're gonna need to fight more slimes for gel so you can make torches so you can get more stuff, right?"</p>
<p>"Oh, lovely. As I said earlier, GOOD NIGHT."</p>
<p>"Pfft, yeah, night Callie."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Into the Caves, We Go!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>"Take this sword, <i>I'll</i> teach you how to fight. Not a reliable mentor, I know, but <i>please</i>. You don't have to do it forever, just till' I learn how to not be a wimp. Okay? Please?"</p><p>Asher stared at the sword with hesitation. Should he really? Asher glanced back up at Callie, hope and faith in her eyes. </p><p>How could he say no?</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The morning sun crept throught the crack of the door, bringing with it a soft breeze and the happy <em>chip chirrup chip chirrup</em> of the birds. Asher woke to a chill on his left and a pain in his neck. He stretched lazily and peered toward the front door. It was cracked open, no sign of anyone near it. Asher's head immediately kicked into overdrive, imagining the worst possibly scenarios. <b>Oh stars, a monster came in and killed Callie, oh no, Pop Pop was right, he-</b></p><p>No. Take a deep breath.</p><p>Callie was most likely off collecting food items, she had barely anything yesterday, save a few mushrooms. Hunting, although such a task required a patience and stealth Callie lacks. Fishing maybe, with no rod. Probably using her sword to spear them. General harvesting, nothing dangerous. Yeah, she was fine, safe, sure, she could barely fight a slime, but she could handle herself. Hopefully. Maybe. Or she-</p><p>Callie slid through the crack in the door, carrying several mushrooms, squirrels, rabbits, and an assortment of other stuff she could've picked up. "Hey, Asher! I left this morning to find food, cuz Moon Lord <em>knows</em> how hungry I am." She set the stuff on the table before pulling out some gel. "I also fought more slimes and managed <b>not</b> to die! I'm doing good, right?"</p><p>Asher openly sighed in relief as Callie put the gel away and began sorting through her findings. At least the small female hadn't died some <b>horrible</b> and <b>gruesome</b> death-</p><p>Geez. He really needed to stop thinking like this.</p><p>Asher smiled groggily in the adventurer's direction. "Yeah, congrats on getting <em>not</em> completely obliterated. So uh," the scruffy brunette gestured to the items haphazardly scattered across the table," what's for breakfast?" The short female glanced at her materials, a look of concentration overtaking her face, before turning to Asher with a wide smile. "I have absolutely <em>no</em> idea! I guess whatever works!" Callie began making <em>something</em> while Asher sat by and chatted with her.</p><p>"So, no heavy damage this time?" Asher questioned. Callie looked back with a smirk. "You put too much faith in me. I healed up using those drugged-up mushrooms of yours." Asher made a sound of protest, but Callie pretended not to hear. "Oh, I found a chest. Acutally, multiple. I brought back this really pretty one, I'll show you when I'm done making food. I fought like, at <em>least</em> 20 slimes. Also, I found this cave system, but there were theses weird sounds coming from it, and K was hungry, so I just left it. I also checked out the desert nearby, but a vulture almost took my head off, so I had to book it. Anyways, your morning?" The tired male's head was reeling from this much info, but managed to respond with a meek "Nothing much, just woke up." Good Moon Lord, did this woman talk a <em>lot</em>.</p><p>Callie pouted at him. "You're boring. Oh hey, I think my conjumbled mess of a breakfast is ready!" She handed Asher a bowl of mushrooms and animal bits and sat down next to him. "Well," she spoke, noticing Asher's hesitation, "dig in!"</p><p>(Out of context author input, yes, they have utensils.)</p><p>Asher scooped up a bit and ate it, expecting the worst, but was hit by a surprising mix of flavors that complemented the ingredients tastes and textures. The sweet flavor and gentle texture of the shrooms mixed with the toughness, yet decidedly foresty taste of the meat left Asher hungry for more. He didn't realize how starving he was until he cleared the bowl, even drinking the broth. The crystal-eyed female chuckled at Asher, who was panting. "Holy stars," he gasped between breaths, "that was <em>terrific</em>. Where'd you learn to cook like that?" Callie opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. She closed it, lost in thought, her expression growing more sad as the seconds passed. "I... don't know, actually." Callie spoke with a small voice, deceptively uncharacteristic of her, though the mud-eyed male only knew her for a day. Asher didn't like the look of sadness on this usually cheery Terrarian.</p><p>He forced a smiled and replied."Wherever you learned this, it is <em>much</em> better than living off of plain ol' mushrooms!" Light returned to the cloud haired females eyes as she looked at him, humor covering her once again. "I could teach you if you want~" Asher shook his head profusely, already imagining the things that could go wrong. "Uh uh, no way. I tried cooking once and I literally, no joke, <em>burnt</em> the water I was supposed to boil. If I try, I'll most likely explode the house, <em>if we're lucky</em>. I think I'll leave the cooking stuff to you." Callie burst out laughing at this. "You <em>what</em>? How do you <b>burn water</b>, dingus? Besides, I have faith in you! You'll probably just condemn us to a painful death or something, if you attempt a dish."</p><p>Callie's laugh was so free-spirited and contagious, Asher couldn't help but join in. Soon, both of them were laughing like maniacs. Asher smiled at Callie, who beamed back, eyes shining. She really did have an otherworldly face, didn't she? Big, slightly tilted eyes, a very round nose, and a plumpish head shape. All together, it made the small albino look pretty, in that foreign way. Asher admired her a little longer, then mentally shook himself. What was he thinking? This was Callie, the reckless newbie who still has a lot to learn. Callie took his bowl and spoon and plopped them in the center of the table. "Ah, well, we'll have to wash these sometime." Callie stared thoughtfully at the dishes. "Meh, I can do em' later. Or you can. <em>I'm</em> gonna go check out that cave n' mine stuff. Namely ores, but stuff in general works." Callie grabbed her wood armor Asher had a faint memory of being crafted early in the morning and the copper tools that she had laid against the wall and headed out the door. "Toodles~" She whisked out the back door, leaving Asher's heart beating a bit faster than normal.</p><p>——————————————————————</p><p>Asher was snoozing when Callie burst in, not even an hour later. She took off her helmet, revealing a badly cut face, dropped it on the floor, and promptly collapsed, shaking. Asher immediately woke up and dashed to her side. "Cal? W-what's wrong? What happened?" The small female looked up, absolute fear clouding her eyes. She sobbed and whimpered, shaking from shock, assumingly. "There were so many of them, Asher," she whispered, at last, "Th-they were <b>everywhere</b>. I-I-I don't even know what I did an-"</p><p>"Shhh," the scruffy man whispered. "Deep breaths,<em> in, and out.</em> Calm down and tell me what happened."Callie cleared her eyes of the forming tears, took several deep, shaky breaths, and spoke. "I was m-mining, just whatever I saw, and a bat came up t-t-to me. It was fine, it lef-f-fft alone, n' then it just started to <em>b-b-b-bite n' scratch n'-</em>" The small albino started to lose it again, so Asher pulled her into a hug until the shaking sobs had passed. When they did, the frightened female wiped her face clean of the tears and continued.</p><p>"I guess the smell of blood or my shrieks <em>or both</em> attracted more monsters, skeletons, bats, <em>slimes</em>, different colored ones, n' to make m-matters worse, I stepped on something n' a thing exploded, blasting me into a wall. I ran n' ran till I came back here." The small albino stared dead into Asher's eyes, or what felt like his soul, with the most fear-filled expression Asher has ever seen. "It was terrifying, Asher. I... I don't want to go back down there. Ever." Callie pressed her head into Asher's chest, wrapping her arms around him like a young child. She was, under justification, only around 20-ish springs, or so it looked, She had a reason to be downright terrified.</p><p>Asher sat there with Callie against his chest for a little longer before gently pulling her away. "Didn't you tell me you had a pretty chest to show me? Can I see it?" Callie tilted her head in confusion, light hitting her puffy eyes, making a sharp contrast to those baby-blue irises.</p><p>"Heh," she breathed, "I forgot about it. Let me f-find it..." From out of her pocket Callie grabbed a sparkling blue chest, with what looked like jewels all over it. She placed it against the opposite wall and gazed with admiration. "It's really p-pretty h-huh, Asher?" The brunette looked thoughtfully at the chest. It certainly was pretty, the way it caught light and glimmered in several colors. Plus, it was a double win. "Hey," he spoke, "now we have a place to put our extra stuff, like old armor and tools." The crystal-eyed female seemed surprised, but shrugged it off. "I kinda for-forgot about that part. But I have no extra armor or tools."</p><p>Asher pointed toward the workbench. "Make a furnace, make bars from that to make an anvil, and go crazy." Callie chuckled, although it was slightly nasally from her stuffy nose. She went over to the workbench and pulled out her crafting book, making a furnace simply by touching the item's picture. "Hey, Ash?" The snow haired albino called as she set down the furnace by the workbench, "What am I gonna use when I craft everything in here?" Asher shot her a look, trying to convey the "you said <em>huh</em>? " without saying a peep.</p><p>"Callie, that book, it's kinda like magic. The more ores, tools and crafting materials you get, the thicker it gets. At some point, you won't be able to even hold it anymore. You technically <b>could</b> craft everything there, but it'd take a <em>while</em>." Callie glanced down at the book, currently mass producing iron bars. "Huh. I guess that's cool. Also, why does it take three ingots to make one bar," Callie inquired, head tilted in confusion at her crafting book, "Shouldn't it only take one?" At this, Asher was flat-out confused. "W-what? No, it's always been like this, what made you think it was otherwise?" Callie shrugged and replied, "I dunno, it just seemed right. Well," she said, turning to the tall brunette, "I have uhhhh... 11 bars, after the anvil. I can live off that, right?"</p><p>One look from Asher told her everything.</p><p>"Please, please, pleeease don't make me go in there again," the small albino pleaded, "I don't want to, it's <b>terrifying</b> alone." Then her face lit up with an idea. "Hey, wait, I don't <b>have</b> to be alone, y-you could come with me!" Asher looked at Callie, so scared, so desperate not to go back to the caves, at least not alone, but he couldn't bring himself to say yes. "I... I can't." The look of heartbreak on Callie destroyed Asher, so he revised. "I mean, it's not like I can f-fight or anything. I don't have a sword, either, soo..." Callie perked up at this and placed the anvil next to the furnace. Asher approached curiously, as Callie flipped through the crafting book with urgency. "Here!" She exclaimed, pressing her finger on a recipe. Almost immediately, a long, sharp object sprung from the book and flew to Callie's hand. She grabbed it, crafting book having disappeared. The small albino then presented the broadsword to Asher. "Take this sword, <em>I'll</em> teach you how to fight. Not a reliable mentor, I know, but <em>please</em>. You don't have to do it forever, just till' I learn how to not be a wimp. Okay? Please?"</p><p>Asher stared at the sword with hesitation. Should he really? Asher glanced back up at Callie, hope and faith in her eyes. How could he say no? After all, what's the worst that could happen. He's already broken rule 1, no building or mining, why not rule 2? He reached for the sword hilt and took hold of it. "Oh, fine. But you better not let me die."</p><p>Callie practically jumped with joy, taking his hand and leading him outside. "Alright, my apprentice, I shall teach you the ways of dueling!" Callie left Asher at the door while she went off to find slimes. To distract himself, Asher took in the scenery. Outside, the sun had reached it's peak, casting minimal shadows, preventing monster ambush. Animals were flitting around, scampering across clearings and up trees to get their lunch, although keeping quiet while doing so. No better time to practice then now, under the noon sun. Callie searched around for a bit, until she found what she was looking for and called Asher over.</p><p>"There it is. Your first monster." Asher examined the slime in front of him. Unlike most hill slimes, this one was pink, and abnormally small. He tilted his head, unsure of what to do. It looked pretty peaceful...</p><p>A bird settled down beside it, unaware of the dangers soon to come. It pecked at the ground, searching for food, generally minding it's own business, and didn't realize the slime had snuck up behind it until it pounced. The bird was absorbed into the pink goo's body, where Callie and Asher watched, one in awe and the other in disgust, as the bird slowly disintegrated, bones and all. Asher restrained himself from puking as Callie voiced her thoughts. "Woah, I knew it, those things are like, <em>acidic</em>. You have to kill it, dude." Asher shivered in fear. What if he was the next victim, what if he was the next to slowly disintegrate, leaving no trace behind-</p><p>
  <b>No. He wouldn't</b>
</p><p>Asher stepped up to the slime. It seemed to know he was there, even without moving. Then, slowly, it began to hopped towards Asher. His legs turned to gel and his pulse increased tenfold. Was this how Callie felt, facing <b>her</b> first slime? Because, <em>dang</em> did he feel bad now. Asher shook his head, clearing all the other thoughts away. For now, he needed to focus on-</p><p>The slime had pounced onto the scruffy brunette's left arm, causing a burning sensation to course through it. He screamed, trying to beat it off with his sword, but to no avail. He was gonna die to a foot-tall pile of pink goo, go figure. His hearing started to shut off, his brain going haywire. Someone was shouting, it was him, right? Suddenly, the burning sensation was gone, and he was propped up against a tree, a rubbery taste filling his mouth.</p><p>"Hey, Ash, you good?" Callie's crystal eyes stared into Asher's tawny ones, worry enveloping her. Asher glanced down at his arms, acid marks disappearing by the second, then at the ground. "I... I thought I was gonna die," he whispered. "I was terrified." Callie scoffed, although it was a gentle kind. "Asher, look at me," Callie commanded. Asher stared back up at the small female, who held his gaze with meaning. "I will never, <em>never</em> let you die. <b>Ever.</b> I will always have your back. Now," she said, smiling softly again, "Wanna try again?"</p><p>So they did, time and time again, on slimes and rabbits and squirrels, an occasional trip to the desert, but nothing too fancy, until Asher was confident in his abilities. Sometime during that, even Callie learned a thing or two, building up her confidence, ready to return to her nightmare. A hop, skip and a pep-talk-meant-more-for-oneself-than-the-other away, and the two faced the entrance of the cave. Callie shivered, obviously not happy about returning, but she said nothing, and walked in the cave with sure steps, Asher trailing behind.</p><p>The farther they got, the less light there was, save a few torches placed here earlier. Finally, the grass and dirt gave way to stone and water. Callie brought out a torch and searched around while Asher did a monster check. The ceiling was surprisingly high, creating shade and preventing much sight up there. Asher turned his attention elsewhere, then immediately heard a small squeak. Asher whipped around fast enough to see a small brown shape hurtling towards him.</p><p>He brought up his sword instinctively, the flat of the sword deflecting the bat's attempted swoop attack. The small creature drifted backwards, dazed, and the scruffy male took the opportunity to strike it. It flapped backwards, angry, before swooping again. The brunette ducked, intending on turning and cutting it up, but a white streak blazed from nowhere and struck it down. Callie looked up, meeting Asher's shocked expression, and chuckled. "Don't act so surprised, I was just helping. Come on, lets move on."</p><p>The two continued their trek, searching for ores and finding minimum, before meeting a dead end. Callie frowned, knocking her fist against it. "I don't think there's anything past this point," the albino called to Asher, who was investigating a small dip in the ground, "We might as well head back." The tawny-haired male rose from his position and joined Callie as they headed back uphill. "That was anti-climatic, don't you think?" Asher said, as he helped Callie up a small gap at the base of the stone hill. "You'd think we'd find cool treasure, or useful ores, or something. Eh, but whatever, some tin works." The pair reached the top, scanning their surroundings for any missed ores before looking up, towards a higher cliff. "Well," he mused, approaching it, "how are we gonna get up-"</p><p>
  <b>Click.</b>
</p><p>Asher glanced down at his foot, which had hit a pressure plate. Remembering Callie's story, he turned to face her, his fear mirrored on her face. This, of all things, was how he was going to go, wasn't it? A second passed, and they realized they wouldn't blow up in a gory death. Asher sighed in relief, moving away, although it was a celebration too early. A scraping sound came from above Callie and Asher, startling the two into looking up. First, a sliver, then a quarter, then a half, then they could almost see the whole thing. Before long, both adventurers were running from a 6-foot tall boulder chasing them down. Asher blasted down the hall they had just came from, Callie following suit.</p><p>Suddenly, Asher's foot fell through the floor, causing him to lurch forward, out of sight. "What the..?" Oh right, the chunk missing from the base. Asher got up just as Callie hopped down, suddenly being pulled into a small space with the small female. He threw out his arms to brace himself, catching the wall. Both turned to watch as the stone rolled past them, straight into the wall, and <em>through it</em>. Turns out, the wall wasn't as solid as Callie had thought. Asher turned to thank Callie, and was face-to-face, nose-tips-touching close to the crystal-eyed Terrarian. Asher's face heated up, and Callie's eyes went wide as they stayed that way for a short bit. Asher abruptly turned away, breaking eye contact and heading toward the new entrance. "Uhh, ok," he said, sheepishly, "how about we uh, do some more exploring?"</p><p>Callie regained composure and chuckled. "Heh heh, no, I think we've had enough, ah, <em> excitement</em> for today. Let's get back to base, 'kay?" So Callie and Asher trudged their way back to base, where Asher made bars and platforms, then moved on to small chores, like cleaning the breakfast dishes, and organizing their chests while Callie made dinner. Asher had just finished organizing when she called him over to the table for roasted rabbit with wild onion and beans. They ate in silence, until Callie brought up the inevitable.</p><p>"So, what's my purpose? Like, my goal?"</p><p>Asher looked up at Callie, tilting his head slightly, trying to seem confused. "What do you mean?" Callie swirled the beans around on her plate before responding. "Well, I came down to this place, like, yesterday, with no memory of who I was, or if I even <em>was</em> anybody, and you mentioned I had a foretold destiny of defeating some Moon Lord. Who even is Moon Lord, and why does he hate Terrarians?" Asher stared at the small albino incredulously, but replied regardless. "Well, Moon Lord is like the god of all gods. He created everything you see around you. Rabbits, birds, grass, the sun, the wind, everything. But the one thing he <b>didn't</b> create were Terrarians. You see, Moon Lord was the only one allowed to make stuff, and so the other gods rebelled and made Terrarians. They kept the monsters from getting too destructive, and the world from getting too wild. Moon Lord didn't take this kindly, and has sought out to destroy them ever since. Although that takes a lot of energy, commanding massive forces to do his bidding, so he only tries once every..."</p><p>Asher trailed off as looked at Callie, who had nodded off, head resting on the table, food unfinished. He sighed and cleaned up the dishes, setting them on a wood platform as he gently picked up Callie and carried her to their sleeping corner. He set her down, sitting next to her to provide support. The albino's head came to rest on the mud-eyed male's, but he put up no protest. He just smiled and pat her on the head, as he, too, began to drift off.</p><p>" 'Night, Cal..."</p><p>"... nmph amphr..."</p><p>"You're weird."</p><p>And although Asher didn't see it, Callie smiled.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Wowwww that's a lot of words....<br/>Anways, how was it? I hope you liked it, I spent awhile writing it. Out of curiosity, what do you think of the current cast? I'm trying to make them as humanly natural as possible, so/and if you guys n' gals have any constructive criticism, I will gladly take it. Mm, that seems to be all. Thank you for reading, keep updated and have a fantastical day!</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>